Method and apparatus for making nuts



Nov. 27 193'4. H. J. HOGUE 1,982,054

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR MAKING NUTS A :ffl/nf] Nov. 27, 1934. H. J. HOGUE METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR MAKING NUTS Filed Feb. 6, 1934 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 @gaf TRNEYS p 3'E suitable source of power.

Patented Nov. 27, 1934 UNITED STATES 4PATENT OFFICE METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR MAKING NUTS Application February 6,

3 Claims.

This invention relates to an improved method and apparatus for making nuts for bolts and has for its principal object the provision of improvements that will reduce the cost of manufacture without changing the quality of the product.

According to modern methods of manufacturing nuts, and particularly nuts for thefsmaller sizes of bolts, rod stock of rectangular cross-section is fed into an automatic machine in which the blanks are perforated, severed from the rod, chamfered, and trimmed in successive' stages.

Round rods, that is, rods of round cross-section,

cost considerably less than rods of rectangular cross-section and my improved method and apparatus are for the purpose of manufacturing nuts from round stock so as to make a substantial saving in the cost of the material, and I am able to do this, by my improved method and apparatus, at no sacrifice in the speed of production or, in other words, by my improved method and apparatus I am able to manufacture nuts .from round stock at the same rate of production as they are now made from rectangular stock. Rod stock of relatively small rectangular cross-section cost more per ton than stock of relatively large rectangular cross-section, and my invention contemplates also, the manufacture of small nuts directly from stock of larger rectangular cross-section than is now used for such small nuts.

In the accompanying drawings, one form of apparatus for practicing my invention is illustrated, and in these drawings,

Figure l is a plan view of the apparatus;

Fig. 2 is an end elevation thereof;

Fig. 3 is a section on the line 3 3 of Fig. l;

Fig. 4 is an enlargement of a portion of Fig. 3 with the parts shown in a different operating relation;

Fig. 5 is a side elevation of a section of rod stock showing the different stages of its conversion from the initial round cross-section to `the nut blank;

Figs. 6 to 9 are cross-sections of the stock 45 taken on the lines 6 6, 7-7, and 9 9, respectively, of Fig. 5; and

Fig. 10 is a side elevation of a finished unthreaded nut blank as produced by the apparatus illustrated.

Referring to the drawings, 20 indicates the frame of the machine and 21 the main power` shaft thereof on which the y wheel 22 is mounted which may be in the form of a spur gear or belt pulley driven from an electric motor or other A cross-head 24 is 1934, serial No. 709,985 (o1. 10-86) arranged for reciprocation in the guides or ways 25 on the frame of the machine. This cross-head carries a relatively large cam roller 26 which cof operates with the cam 27 that is fixed on the shaft 21 and rotates therewith. The cam 27 is suitably shaped to move the cross-head 24 forward to effect the operations hereinafter described, and the return movements of the crosshead are effected by means of a cam 23 with which a roller 23 cooperates. The roller 23 is mounted f on the upper end of an oscillatable arm 23 which is connected with the cross-head by means of the rods 24. On an extension 28 of the cross-head there are a flattening punch 29, a piercing ypunch 30 and a blank-severing punch 3l, these punches being securely clamped in position as shown. The round rod stock, entering the machine,'is indicated at 32 in Fig. 1, and rst passes through a drawing die 33 that changes the stock from the round to the v substantially oval cross-section shown in Fig. 7. The drawing 'die 33 is mounted in a bracket 34 that is secured to the frame of the machine and, adjacent this bracket, the frame carries a pair of vertical shafts 35 on which 'the feeding and flattening rolls 36 are mounted. The shafts 35 are operatively connected by the gearing 37 and are intermittently rotated to feed the stock forward by suitable mechanism (not shown) which is actuated from the shaft 21 and which may be of the type that is commonly used in the well-known types of nut making machines.

From the feeding and flattening rolls 36 the stock passes into a guide slot 38 and through a stripper plate 39 which is provided with suitable openings for the`punches. 29,. 30 and 3l. The stripper plate is mounted on a die block 40 that is securely held on the frame oi. the machine and behind this die block and suitably guided is a vertically reciprocating head 41.. A rocker shaft 42 is supported in suitable bearings in the legs 43 of the frame of the machine and carries a rocker arm 44 which is operatively connected with the head 4l by the connecting rod 45-so that the oscillation of the shaft 42 will effect the vertical reciprocation of the head 41. An eccentric cam 46 is secured on the shaft 21 and a connecting rod 47 having a yoke 48, arranged alongside the cam 46, is operatively connected at 49 with a crank disk 50 on the shaft 42. The yoke 48 carries rollers 51 on opposite sides of the cam 46 and cooperating with the latter so that, as the cam rotates, the connecting rod 47 is moved back and forth and effects the oscillation of the shaft 42.

The punch 29 is preferably provided with a companied by the formation of the depression 53 which, in the finished nut, serves as a counter'- sink for facilitating the application of the nut to the bolt. Each feeding movement ofthe rolls 36 forces the stock forward a distance equal to the width of the nut across the ats and the punch 3U is spaced from the punch 29 the distance of two feeding movements, and the punch'BOfoperates on the stock to remove a slug therefrom.

and thereby form an opening through the nut vfor the reception' of the tapping tool which is subsequently used to form the threadsin the nut.

The'punch 31 has an extension 54 on the end thereof and when this punch operates on the stock the extension 54 is arranged in the opening formed by the punch 30. The punch 3,1 is spaced-from the punch 30 the distance of two feeding operations and shears the stock along -a line 55 `(see Fig. 5) to severfthe blanks.4 Y l The head 41 carries a trimming die-56 and an anvil 57 which is arranged above the trimming die. -The anvil 57 has a recess 58in its operating face into whichthe severed blanks are forced by the lpunch 3l so as to chamferthe cornersof-one face of the nut. The trimming `die 55l has an opening 59 therein in alignment with the punch 31 and the nut blank is forced through .this opening to trim the sides of the nut to the finished dimensions. l l

g The operation of the mechanism just referred to `for completing the nut blank,.will bek undervstoodfrom Figs. 3 and 4. The stock,in these gures'is indicated at 6G and, asthe punch 31 approaches the stock, the projection 5d enters the opening 61 and then the punch severs the blank from the stock. The anvil 57 is positioned in line with the punch 3l, as shownjin 4, and the punch carries the blank against the anvil and forces the blank into `the depression 58 vtoperform the chamfering operation. The crosshead 24 is then given a-slightbackward movement which withdraws the blank from the depression 58f'andthe blank is'then momentarily held .in the opening 62 ofthe die block 40. The head 4l isthen moved upward, bv` therocl shaft 42, to the position shown in Fig. 3, and the punch v31 is then. moved forward to` force theblanlt through' they opening in the trimming die 55 to perform the trimming operation; .The blank then drops into the pocket 63 whence it is discharged through thei chute 64. The cross-head y24 `is then moved backward to restore the punch 31 to the position shown in Fig. 4. n

on' different portions of the stock simultaneously. yAfter the cross-head 24 has moved backward to restore the punches to the position shown in Fig. l, the stock .is again moved forward against a stop 65 and the punches will thereupon repeat the operations. When stock of rectangular crosssection is usedinstead of round stock it is only necessary to change the drawing die 33 to one having an opening adapted to draw down the stock to fa smaller rectangular section. It' will thus be* seen that I have provided 'an improved method and apparatus by which round rods or rectangulanbars mayv be'converted intolnut blanks, whichaare: of squared or any otherdesired shape, by a continuous operation.

Having thus ldescribed my invention, I claim:

1. In nut-making apparatus; thecombination with reciprocating mechanisznifor automatically piercing and i severingv nut blanks from. continuous rod'stock; of vintermittently operating rolls for feedingand flattening the stock prior tothe operation .thereon of `said mechanism, a recipro- 'l eating. flattening punch carried bylsaidmechamism-for flattening the Stockbetween said 'rolls and said f piercing mechanism,` said .mechanism operating on the stock between the feeding Inovements thereof, and a drawing die-throughwhichl the. stock is drawn by said feeding means, said die being adapted to change said stock-ironia round to a substantially oval cross-section.

2. Thehereindescribed method of making nut blanks which consists inA intermittently moving a continuous round rod,.drawing the stock toa substantially oval cross-sectionk and then rolling the'stock from the oval to `a substantially rectangular crossesection, said drawngf and-rolling operations' being'performed` on different sections 12o of the stock simultaneously, and whilethe stock isy in motion, and piercing the stock and severing blanks therefrom while stationary.

3. The hereindescribedmethod of .makingnut blanks which consists in intermittently movinga 1.25 continuous round'rcd, drawing the stock to a substantially oval crossesection and then rolling the-stock from the oval to a substantially'rectangularcross-section, said `drawing and rolling operations being performed on different sections 3U 0f the stock simultaneously, and while the Vstock is ini motion, land attening Vand piercing the stock and severing blanks therefrom while fstationary. i

` 4HENRY J, HOGUE. 35 

